Sky Riders
by Noofle
Summary: S1 Ep4. When the Doctor and Brittany end up on Messaline, they get more than they bargained for. Who are the mysterious Sky Riders? What is the purpose of the war? Where do the missing people go? And, most importantly, will they get out in one piece?
1. Unpaid Ransom

**A/N: A long time coming, but here it is! Episode four in my Series, so anyone who has just randomly opened this up, there are a previous three episodes sitting on this site somewhere. As for all you other people who have been reading from the start, prepare for episode four, Sky Riders, the story that was lost, then found, then lost again, then only rediscovered yesterday! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: This disclaimer has been deleted for security purposes.**

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**SERIES ONE: EPISODE FOUR**

**SKY RIDERS**

**CHAPTER ONE: UNPAID RANSOM**

There was a war.

And it wasn't a little war either; it was a full-blown planet-wide assault. There had been no warning, and now, there could be no solution.

It had started two weeks ago, and even though it had been such a short space of time, nearly all the major population centres on the planet had been reduced to smoking ruins. The technology of the invaders was far more advanced that what had been invented on the planet below. It was not a fair fight.

It was a slaughter.

Much of the population had been relocated to various military bases across the planet, and one such place was Tiger Base Three. Headed by General Miller, it was holding against the onslaught from above, but nothing could survive. Not for long anyway.

Two weeks ago, when the war had been nothing but a memory, Sergeant Jake Sampson of Tiger Three had been dragged out of bed at one in the morning to reply to an incoming transmission.

That had been the first time he had seen the Sky Riders, and the first time that the fate of an entire world had been in his hands.

While General Miller was technically the leader of Tiger Three, it was Sergeant Jake who gave the orders. In times of emergency, it was him the soldiers turned to.

The control room of Tiger 3 was abuzz with activity when Jake swept in through the large, double doors. Displays strobed across wall-mounted screens, flashing with a thousand warnings.

"What's the situation?" Jake asked, trying to sound as important as possible.

A technician looked up from his workstation. "An unidentified object has entered our solar system, sir."

A podium in the centre of the room flickered into life when the technician tapped a command into his computer. Blue particles around for a few seconds, before resolving themselves into a holographic image of a solar system. All the planets were clearly marked out, including their moons and paths of orbit. Between the orbit of the seventh and eighth planets, there was a flashing red dot.

"Comet?" Jake asked, walking closer to the display.

The technician shook his head. "No sir. The object is accelerating, by itself and without gravitational influence."

Jake peered closely at the display. "A spaceship then?"

"We believe so, sir." The diagram of the solar system disappeared, replaced with a three-dimensional rotating image of a spaceship of some sorts, complete with length, width, height, weight and other measurements.

The ship itself looked like half a cylinder; the top of the hull was curved, while the bottom was completely flat. One end of the spaceship was equipped with three exhaust nozzles, the other end tapered to a point. Short, stubby wings stuck out of either side of the ship, tips pointing downwards.

"Satellites on the outer planets produced this image," the technician explained. "The hull is comprised of some unknown type of metal; the scanners can't see what is inside the ship."

Jake checked the measurements. "Eight hundred metres long," he said aloud, circling the display. "One hundred metres high and three hundred metres wide, including the wings." Jake turned back to the technician. "How fast is it going?"

"It's hard to tell," the technician replied, looking back at his workstation. "The spaceship is accelerating at an exponential rate. If it keeps up the same rate of acceleration, it'll be here in five minutes."

"Do the other military bases know about this?" Jake asked, turning back to the holographic display.

"Yes sir. They're waiting for our orders."

"Our orders?" Jake stopped his circling, a confused look on his face. "Why our orders?"

"The captain of the spaceship has requested to speak to the leader of Tiger Base 3."

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Jake exclaimed, striding past the hologram, which had reverted back to the solar system diagram. "Put them up on screen."

The technician nodded, and opened a secure communication link with the spaceship. The largest screen in the room, which had previously been blank, turned on, a single image expanding to fill the whole screen.

Sergeant Jake placed himself directly in front of the screen, prepared to reason with whoever was flying the spaceship, but he could never have prepared himself for the image that greeted him.

Three creatures filled the screen, but they were completely alien to Jake Sampson. He had never seen their like before. Only the top half of their bodies could be seen, but that was more than enough for a striking effect. The three creatures were wearing some kind of armour; it looked like smooth metal plates over some kind of black fabric. Helmets obscured facial features, but it was obvious that they had long snouts and pointed ears.

All three creatures turned their attention to the Sergeant, and the one in the centre started to speak. To Jake it sounded like a series of growls, yips and barks, but it was a complex language, far different from what humans were used to hearing.

"Readying translator software," someone said, further back in the room, but Jake payed them no heed. He took a step forward and looked up at the screen.

"I am Sergeant Jake Sampson, leader of Tiger Base here, representing the planet Messaline on behalf of its peoples; human, hath or otherwise," he said, starting with a formal greeting.

The three creatures looked at each other, and the middle one started to speak again. "We are the Sky Riders," it said in perfect, unaccented Galactic Standard. "We come seeking a deal."

"The spaceship has entered the orbit of Messaline," one of the technicians announced. "Ground to space weapons are primed."

"What kind of deal?" Jake asked.

"We want only one thing. We want the Time Lord. We want the Doctor."

"And what do we get in return?"

The lead creature leant closer to the screen. "Your planet will be spared."

Quiet mutterings broke out across the room, but when Jake looked around, no one made any move to say anything to the Sky Riders.

"We have not heard of this 'Time Lord' you speak of," he said.

"You lie," the creature growled.

"I wouldn't lie. I truly have no idea who this 'Time Lord' is."

"You lie!" The creature was shouting now, paying no attention to what the Sergeant was trying to say. "This planet will suffer until he is given to us."

Before Jake could reply the transmission cut out.

That had been two weeks ago, and there had been no mention of who this 'Doctor' was. Without him, Jake knew, there could be no end to this war.

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	2. Not a Party, then?

**A/N: And: hooray! Chapter two! Thanks to all you people who review my stories (all three of you), you make my day(s)! I don't mind being inundated with reviews, and actually, the more reviews I get, the faster I write, so, have a think about that, all you people who don't review but like my stories. I'm rambling...**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who....it owns me! (Yes, a concept can own you)**

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**CHAPTER TWO: NOT A PARTY, THEN?**

Brittany laughed as she danced out of the Doctor's reach, putting the central console between her and the agitated Time Lord. He darted to his left, arms outstretched, but Brittany just skipped around the console, keeping exactly opposite the Doctor.

"Give it back," he cried, feinting from one side to the other. Brittany chuckled, and waved the piece of black fabric in her hand around. "You're much better off without it."

The Doctor slumped down in the console room's only chair, head hanging in defeat. "But it's mine," he muttered.

With a sigh, Brittany sat down next to the Time Lord. "If it means that much to you, you can have it back." She dropped the strip of fabric onto his lap.

He snatched it up, as if worried that Brittany might steal it again. Once he was satisfied that he was safe, the Doctor relaxed, and threaded the piece of fabric through the collar of his white shirt, tying the loose ends in a smart bow.

"So," he said as he leapt to his feet, brushing off his black tuxedo. "What d'ya think?"

Brittany put on a heavily exaggerated expression, and stroked her chin. Then, she broke into a wide smile. "Spiffy," she said.

The Doctor seemed pleased with that comment, and gave her a grin that matched her smile in size. "Go on then. Give me a spin."

Brittany lost her smile, instead directing a heavy scowl at the Time Lord. He ignored her obvious annoyance, and continued to grin at her. Knowing this was a battle she couldn't win, she gave in, and spun around on the spot.

The skirt of her blue dress swirled outwards before settling down mid-calf. Black moccasins on her feet matched the black headband holding back her shoulder-length hair, while blue beads stitched onto her shoes were the same colour as her dress.

"Lovely," the Doctor said, not with a small amount of relish at teasing his companion. He smiled at her still scowling face, and said, "We're all set then."

"I hate dresses," Brittany growled, her eyes not leaving the Time Lord as he turned away to search through the pockets of his coat, which was draped through one of the coral pillars.

"I know," he said, almost, but not quite, hiding the humour in his voice.

Brittany picked up on that tiny bit of mirth, and her scowl deepened. "Can't I change into something different?"

"No. That would be an insult. It's bad to insult people." The Doctor pulled something out of coat. "Catch," he said, throwing it to her.

She caught it, and recognised it as the leather wallet that contained a piece of slightly psychic paper. "And you would know all about that," she scoffed, responding to the Doctor's previous comment with more than a bit of sarcasm. "You're allowed to insult potentially deadly aliens, but I'm not allowed to insult some idiotic person hosting a ridiculous party?"

"This is a very important idiot we're talking about," the Doctor shot back, handing Brittany his sonic screwdriver. "It pays not to upset Lenny McGuire."

"And why is that?" Brittany asked, as she let the Doctor lead her down the stairs to the door.

The Time Lord shrugged dismissively. "Because he's the head of the New New York mafia family."

Brittany froze. "I'm sorry? Did I hear you right? Because I just think that I heard you say that we're going to a party run by the mafia."

The Doctor's grin faded ever so slightly. "That's right."

"No way. Nu-uh. I'm not going."

"Oh, come on Brittany, it'll be fun," he insisted, tugging on her arm. "Me and Lenny go way back. Good pals, we are. Thick as thieves."

"Sure. Right up until the moment that you slip up and say something rude, and they all pull machine guns out of their suitcases."

The Doctor frowned. "This is the year five billion and sixty-two, I don't think –"

"Laser guns, whatever," Brittany said, cutting him off. "The point still stands. The mafia aren't a very forgiving bunch."

"But they sure know how to throw a party!" the Doctor exclaimed and, before she could protest, dragged Brittany through the TARDIS doors and out into the open.

She looked around at the crumbling walls and caved-in roof. "So, where's the party?"

The Doctor rubbed his head. "I think I may have muddled up the location a bit. And probably the date as well." He looked around, noting the arched windows and stonework. "This looks like a church."

"Not a party, then?"

"Afraid not."

"Alright then," said Brittany, already turning to head back towards the Doctor's ship. "Let's go back to the TARDIS and – hey! Where are you going?"

The Doctor smiled at her. "To ask that person over there where we are," he said, pointing across the room at someone Brittany hadn't previously noticed before.

It was an old man, seated on a chair. He was watching the newcomers with interest, and Brittany supposed that that was because he had never seen two people come out of a blue box before. However, when the Doctor approached, his stare suggested a man with nothing worth left worth living for.

"Hello," the Doctor said, in his stereotypically cheerful manner. "We were just wondering if you could tell us the date? We would be most grateful."

"Dates have no meaning anymore, not to me," the old man replied absently, staring at the darkening blue sky through a gaping hole in the ceiling. "Why bother with things like dates, when we can measure our lives by the suffering."

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "Right," he continued, stretching out the vowel. "Could you at least tell us where we are? We just want to be on our way."

"War," was all the man said, and further cajoling didn't reveal anything else, except that the man had an apparent fondness for carrots.

"Great job," Brittany hissed, as the Doctor lead her towards a stairwell. "You've just landed us in the middle of a war."

The Doctor just rolled his eyes, and started down the staircase. Brittany seriously considered going back to the TARDIS, but decided that the Doctor would get into trouble a lot faster than he normally would if she wasn't there.

The room at the bottom of the staircase was long and wide, the main gathering hall of the church. Many of the pews had been removed, but many still remained, providing seating for the thirty odd people within the room. The Doctor walked over to the nearest seat, and sat down opposite three figures; two humans and one fish-like alien.

"Hello," he said again, in his cheerful voice. "This may sound strange, but could you tell us where we are?"

The human on the left, a redheaded woman, smiled weakly at him. "This is a church," she said, not rudely, but as if she were speaking to a child.

The Doctor nodded. "Yeah, good. But what planet?"

The fishman bubbled something undecipherable to Brittany's ears, but the Doctor obviously knew what was going on, because he smiled in response to whatever the alien had just said. "I'm easily confused," he said in reply to the fishman. "I would still like to know."

The redhead smiled again, but this time it was a genuine warm smile. "How you can be ignorant of what planet you're on, I don't know, but I suppose I better tell you. This is the planet Messaline, a human-hath colony."

The Doctor grinned. "And the year?"

The fishman bubbled something in reply, and the Time Lord nodded. "Thanks, I was –"

He was cut off when the large double doors at the end of the hall burst open to admit a man. "They're coming!" the newcomer shouted, catching everyone's attention. "The Tigers are coming!"

"Tigers?" Brittany whispered to the Doctor, who only shrugged in response.

As soon as the man had shouted his warning, everyone in the room had leapt to their feet, personal belongings in their hands. There was a frenzied dash for the door, and before the Doctor had a chance to ask what was going on, the room was empty.

"I wonder what's gotten into them?" Brittany said, staring around at the vacant chairs.

The Doctor frowned, genuine concern in his expression. "I wonder indeed."


	3. Holy Ground

**A/N: I'm planning of doing a fic where Jack and the Doctor accidentally swap bodies, and some of the antics they get up to. Tell me if you would like to read that, otherwise it'll be put on hold until I finish Faceless.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who, but be warned, I have learnt the secret of reincarnation! I turned my grandmother into a cactus!**

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**CHAPTER THREE: HOLY GROUND**

The Doctor closed the doors to the church with a resounding boom and wandered back over to Brittany. "No sign of those 'Tigers', whatever they are," he said, sitting down on a pew.

"No chance of a quiet night out?" Brittany asked resignedly, sitting down next to him.

"No. We have to find out what's going on here." The Doctor leant back and rested his feet on the chair opposite him. "There's something wrong. I can feel it."

"What do you mean by that?"

"It's a Time Lord thing," he replied, staring at the ceiling. "One thing you have to understand about time is that it can either be fixed or in flux. A fixed event will always happen; nothing we ever do can stop that. The extinction of the dinosaurs, the first moon landing, the creation of the universe; things like that can never be changed without creating a multitude of problems for the universe. But most of time isn't like that. Most event are in flux, always changing, never staying the same."

Brittany struggled to work out what the Doctor was trying to tell her. "So, the time we've landed in is in flux, and changing? Is that what you mean?"

"Well, yes and no." He gave her a very long and complicated look that she couldn't decipher before continuing. "As a Time Lord, I can see the very essence of time. It doesn't mean I can see the future, that ability is beyond me, but what I can see is echoes. Echoes of what could have happened, what might have happened and what should have happened. While you humans wander around completely oblivious to what's going on around you, I can see all the consequences even the simplest actions can have. It's just a burden I have to bear." He sighed heavily. "What I can see now isn't good. Something different should have happened."

He stood up, and started to pace backwards and forwards, hands deep inside his trouser pockets. "This war doesn't feel right. It's like someone is messing with time, moulding it like plasticine. I can't tell what's doing it, but it feels familiar, like I should know. That's the problem with getting old. You don't remember what you used to."

Brittany looked the skinny alien up and down. He didn't look old, not to her, but she knew he was over nine hundred years old. "Well, can't we go back in time and stop this war from ever starting?" Brittany suggested. "That could save us a lot of trouble."

The Doctor stopped pacing, and turned to her. "No," he said flatly, shaking his head. "That would be a paradox, and trust me, we don't want one of them. We've already seen the war; if we go back and stop it, we won't ever have seen it, so we couldn't have known about it to go back and stop it in the first place. It can get very messy very quickly without the Time Lords around to clean things up." He clamped his mouth shut, knowing that he'd said more than he had meant to.

"'Without the Time Lords'," Brittany repeated slowly, locking the Doctor with a steely glare. "What do you mean by that?"

The Doctor sat down next to her. "While the middle of a war may not be the best time to tell you this, a church is probably as good a place as any. You were going to find out eventually, so I may as well tell you now." He fell silent as he tried to work out where to begin, and Brittany wasn't willing to interrupt him. He was obviously struggling with some strong feelings, and she didn't want to upset him further.

"There were two races fighting in a war. A time war. The Last Great Time War, in fact. It was my race, the Time Lords, against another race from the planet Skaro, called daleks. Everyone…" He paused, biting back the sadness. "Everyone lost," he continued. "Both planet burnt. Gallifrey and Skaro, forever gone from the sky. It's all gone now. There's just me, and the TARDIS. The only remnants of Gallifrey in the whole wide universe."

Brittany couldn't find anything to say. She knew that he was lonely, but she hadn't realised just how alone he was. And the way in which he was talking about the destruction of people had her tearing up; it was hard enough to lose loved ones, but your whole race gone forever…

"The Time Lords safeguarded time," the Doctor said, not willing to stop quite yet. "They made sure that everything worked like it was supposed to. Without them, the universe became just that bit more dangerous. I try my best to fix things, but there's only one of me, and billions upon billions of problems out there."

"I had no idea," Brittany whispered, shocked by what she'd discovered. "I'm sorry, but I had no idea."

He Doctor waved a hand dismissively. "Don't apologise. It's not your fault." He stood up, looking like the Doctor she was used to, sadness locked away from sight. "Still, this war won't end itself."

Brittany jumped to her feet. "Do you mean…?"

Oh yes!" exclaimed the Doctor. "We might not be able to stop it from ever starting, but it's as plain as the nose on my face that we can help end this war. So, are you with me?"

"Of course," Brittany replied readily.

The Doctor grinned. "Off we go then."

Just as he finished saying that, the double doors at the end of the hall burst open for a second time, revealing a number of unfriendly looking soldiers.

"I don't think they'll want to help us," Brittany observed.

"Yeah," the Doctor agreed. "They don't look like the type that would offer you tea and biscuits." He glanced over hi shoulder, while Brittany kept her eye on the advancing soldiers.

"Any ideas?" she asked.

"Yes," he whispered. "There's a staircase behind us. Are you up for it?"

"What about the TARDIS?"

"Nah, too far. The soldiers would get to us before we could make it." He glanced over his shoulder again. "Get ready to run."

Brittany nodded, and tensed her legs. The Doctor quickly judged the distance between them and the soldiers, and was satisfied that they could make it.

"Okay," he whispered. "RUN!!"

She did.

The soldiers gave chase.


	4. Going Up

**A/N: Fourth chapter, Hopes you like. And, just as a warning, this story is a bit more angsty compared to my other ones, don't know why, that's just how it turned out. Strange.**

**Disclaimer: This disclaimer was removed by the government. They are always watching. They stole my donkey.**

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**CHAPTER FOUR: GOING UP**

The soldiers were faster than the Doctor had anticipated, but he and Brittany had enough of a head start that it wouldn't matter. What he hadn't counted on was that the soldiers would pull guns on them.

"Faster!" the Doctor shouted, ducking instinctively as shots rang out. Brittany cried out and tripped, hands clutching at her leg. The Doctor paused long enough to see that the soldiers only had stun guns, which meant they were trying to capture he pair, but whether that was a good or bad thing he didn't know.

"I'll come back for you, I promise," the Doctor called out, reaching the foot of the stairs and taking them two at a time. What he was doing might seem cruel, but it was no use both of them being captured. Then he rounded a corner, and lost sight of his pursuers. He could still hear though, so he didn't slow down, instead running up the spiral staircase at full speed.

That was one advantage he had over the soldiers; he was very god at running. He'd had hundreds of years of experience, and despite his misleading appearance, he could run exceptionally fast when he needed to.

The staircase ended in a small trapdoor, which the Doctor pushed open. After climbing through, he slammed it shut, intending to lock it with his sonic screwdriver. His hand stopped halfway to his pocket when he remembered that Brittany still had it. Or, at least, he hoped she still had it. As the trapdoor could only be opened from the inside and there were no conveniently placed large objects to block anyone opening it, he was left at the top of a bell tower with no way out.

The bell caught his eye, and a plan formed itself inside his head. He checked how high up he was before running around behind the bell and curling his fingers under the rim. This wasn't the time to have a nasty accident.

The trapdoor flew open, and a couple of soldiers leapt out. The first soldier started to run at the Doctor, and realised what the Time Lord was doing a couple of seconds too late. The swinging bell caught him in the chest, simultaneously breaking some ribs and flinging him back into his two comrades. The bell came back towards the Doctor and he jumped backwards to avoid it, covering his ears as it tolled loudly.

The three soldiers groaned and tried to pull themselves apart as the Doctor watched them, a smile gracing his lips. "Sorry about that," he apologised, leaping up onto the ledge that ran around the edge of the tower's platform. "Can't stay and chat, things to do places, places to be. See ya!" He leapt over the edge of the tower and two angry yellow lasers buzzed over his head. He landed heavily on the roof of the church, which was barely a metre and a half below the stubby tower, and pain lanced up his left arm. A quick check revealed that it was neither broken nor dislocated, just bruised.

Shouts from the top of the tower reminded the Doctor that he wasn't safe yet, and needed to get away from this church. Roof shingles came away underneath his feet as he stood up unsteadily. A tile next to his foot turned into a bubbling pool of molten rock, and he edged away from the liquefied shingle as it melted a hole in the roof of the church.

When the Doctor turned around, he saw that the two uninjured soldiers at the top of the tower were taking shots at him and whatever they were using, it wasn't a stun gun. He didn't doubt that if they hit him, what had happened to that roof tile would happen to him. The Doctor didn't want any part of his body melted, so he decided that it was a prudent time to run.

The roof of the church was unstable and had fallen through in many places. Each step the Doctor took sent avalanches of tiles cascading towards the edge. The laser shots were still zipping past his head, and either the soldiers were terrible shots or his weaving course was throwing off their aim.

Just as he finished thinking that, one of the lasers skimmed along the side of his shoe, melting the rubber to his sock. The searing heat put him off balance and he slipped over, landing on a wave of shingles slipping towards the edge of the roof. He barely regained his senses in time, managing to lock his fingers around the edge of the roof as his legs swung out into open space.

Suddenly, his fingers were taking all the strain and he could feel them slipping closer to the edge. Not taking his eyes off the pair of soldiers in the bell tower, he used his feet to try and find a ledge or a window – anything he could lower himself onto – but all he could feel was smooth stone. A laser whizzed past his ear, and it would only be a matter of time before one of the soldiers managed to hit him. He was a sitting duck. Another shot zoomed past, this time skimming bare centimetres above his hair.

Taking a deep breath, the Doctor released his grip, letting himself fall down the side of the building. He attempted to grab onto a passing window but missed, fingers scrabbling at bare stone. He hit a lower level of the roof, shattering the flimsy stone shingles, but not the structure of the roof itself. With a groan, he began to get up, but the whole roof began to move, the shifting tiles carrying him off the edge. His next landing was slightly softer, the collapsing roof having the courtesy to deposit him into a small garden filled with half dead bushes. He decided that it was quite comfortable in the bushes, and stayed there to catch his breath.

But it is never that easy, and he heard someone talking, so he pressed himself deeper into the bushes, ignoring the pain as the branches dug into him. Two soldiers passed by, not even thinking to look at the garden, followed seconds later by a slow moving truck. After the convoy had passed, the Doctor dashed across the road into the shadow of a destroyed house. He crept along silently and once he was opposite the corner of the church, he pressed himself flat against the wall and watched the soldiers.

The two soldiers that had passed him were opening up the back of the truck and lowering a ramp. The Doctor frowned as he watched six men manhandle the TARDIS into the truck and secure it using some kind of netting. Next, a couple more soldiers carried Brittany up into the back of the truck, and the Doctor was pleased to see she was putting up a fight, trying to kick her captors. It looked like one of them had a bleeding nose.

Then the doors to the truck closed and the vehicle started to move off, the soldiers taking up flanking positions around it. Without any hesitation, the Doctor followed them, taking care to remain unseen. He wasn't just going to let them kidnap Brittany. He was just starting to like her, and besides, he had made a promise to both her and Sally, and he wasn't a man that went back on his word.


	5. Enlisting

**A/N: Fifth chapter up for your reading pleasure. My fingers are cold right now...can't type...brrrr.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who.....but look, I have half a pencil. that's gotta count for something, right?**

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**CHAPTER FIVE: ENLISTING**

Brittany sat next to the TARDIS, her arms folded indignantly across her chest. She didn't appreciate being dragged around by soldiers, but at least they hadn't tied her up. They had guns, so it probably didn't matter whether they did or not, but it made Brittany feel slightly better. When she had been carried into the truck, she hadn't caught any sight of the Doctor, so she assumed that he had escaped. That was cold comfort though, because it meant that she was inside a truck surrounded by soldiers without the Time Lord. The Doctor had better come back for her, and soon. She didn't like the way the soldier opposite her was eyeing her legs.

While a dress might be good for going to a mafia run party in the year five billion, it didn't quite cut it for running around in the middle of the war. Without telling the Doctor, she had put shorts on underneath, and was glad she had done so. When you were with the Doctor, you just had to prepare for the worst. The shorts gave her a place to keep the sonic screwdriver and psychic paper safe, though she still didn't know why he had given them to her in the first place. Surely that tuxedo of his had pockets?

After a few long minutes, the truck slowed down, and finally came to a halt. The back of the truck opened, and she was ushered out and handed over to another group of soldiers like she was nothing more than a package. Without saying anything, they motioned for her to follow them, so she did, walking down a long straight utilitarian corridor. That was when she noticed the insignia on their shoulders. It looked like a tiger leaping over the number three.

Tigers, she thought to herself. Are they the good guys or the bad guys? Only time would tell.

One of the soldiers opened a door and motioned for her to go through. She scowled at them as she did. The soldier closed the door, but just before he did she caught the tiniest snippet of conversation. "…go see Sergeant Sampson to find out what the hell we're meant to do with that blue box…"

Brittany filed that information away in case she needed it, and sat down in one of the room's chairs. The room was blank walled like the hallway she had just left, with only two chairs and a table for furnishings. It reminded her a lot of Jana's interrogation chamber back on Sydoriv. On the table there was a plate of sandwiches, but she wasn't remotely hungry. She supposed it was the thought that counted.

About half a minute later, a new soldier entered the room, one she hadn't seen before. He sat down opposite her, resting his hands on the table. For a long time he just stared at her, and she stared right back. In no way did this man scare her. Once you've stared straight into the eyes of a monster that could kill you with one touch, interrogators just didn't seem so frightening anymore.

"Could you tell me your name?" the soldier began.

Brittany just shrugged lazily, and rocked backwards on her chair.

"That man you were with, who was he?"

Brittany shrugged again.

"Can you tell me what the blue box is?"

"Could I speak to a higher authority?" Brittany shot back. "I know important things that could change the outcome of the war."

The soldier looked taken aback, obviously not used to people asking him questions. "I – uh, well…"

"Just go get Sergeant Sampson," Brittany instructed, and the soldier left the room, sure that this was way over his head. For once, he was able to allow someone else to take over. Brittany just hoped she wasn't making the wrong decision.

A couple of minutes later, the door opened again, this time admitting a tall man with close cropped brown hair and blue eyes, wearing an outfit similar to all the other soldiers she had seen, except the insignia on his shoulder had an extra marking on it, sort of like an upturned triangle.

"I'm Sergeant Jake Sampson," he said, locking her with a stare far fiercer than the interrogator had used. "I heard you wanted to see me."

"Yes," Brittany replied, not balking under the fierce glare. Without hesitating, she lifted up the hem of her dress, and pulled the psychic paper out of her pocket. If the Sergeant thought this was odd, his face didn't show it. He didn't bat an eyelid as he took the leather wallet and peered inside at the paper.

"It says here that you are Captain Brittany Harvey from the Messaline head office," Jake observed, handing the wallet back to her.

"That's correct." Brittany breathed a mental sigh of relief. She wasn't quite sure if it was going to work, but thankfully it had.

"You must forgive us, we hadn't realised." He snapped his hand up to his brow in a crisp salute. "Ma'am."

"Thank you, but you don't need to salute," Brittany said. Remembering an old military term, she added, "At ease."

Jake immediately dropped his hand into his pocket, and nodded for Brittany to follow him out. On her way towards the door, she grabbed the plate of sandwiches.

"You don't mind, do you?" she said, picking up one of the wedge-shaped snacks. "I'm famished." Now that she'd gotten over the general anxiety of being captured, she was starving. Jake nodded for her to continue, and she did, devouring all three sandwiches while they walked. After she had finished, Jake asked, "When they found you, the soldiers said there was a man with you. Who was he?"

Brittany shrugged, and quickly concocted a story that she hoped would fit in with what had happened so far. "Some fellow named John. He said he could help me find you, but when the soldiers turned up, he ran. I don't think he likes guns."

Jake frowned. "He's not religious, is he?"

"No, I don't think so," Brittany replied, shaking her head. "He just doesn't like guns."

"Good," Jake said with a small smile. "If the Church of the Man who Never Would knew where we were, there'd be trouble."

Brittany nodded knowingly, when really she had absolutely no idea what the Sergeant was talking about.

The corridor they were walking down suddenly ended in a pair of double doors. Jake placed his hands on them, and pushed. "Welcome, Captain Harvey, to Tiger Base Three."


	6. Interference

**A/N: Not much to say. Must go to bed. Too late to stay up and write author notes.**

**Disclaimer: this disclaimer doesn't disclaim anything other than the fact that I don't claim Doctor Who. You get?**

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**CHAPTER SIX: INTERFERENCE**

Thunder boomed across the city, but the Doctor payed it no heed. All his attention remained focused on following the military truck. If he let t out of his sight, he risked losing Brittany, and he didn't want that to happen. Oh, and the TARDIS was on that truck as well. In front of him, the vehicle had just rounded a corner, and he made to follow it.

That was when someone grabbed him from behind, and dragged him backwards, away from his gaol. He had been so intent on following the truck that he hadn't been paying attention to his surroundings. His unseen assailant clamped a hand over his mouth, and wrapped an arm around his stomach, pinning his own arms to his side.

He lashed backwards with his foot, and felt it make contact with something. His attacker released their grip, and the Doctor spun around, ready to meet the next attack. What he saw put him off guard for only a second, but it was enough time for the woman before him to drag him into an alleyway.

"What do you think you are doing?" she hissed as she released his arm. "Following those soldiers like that. Are you mad or something?"

The Doctor scowled at her. "And what about you? Assaulting an innocent person in the street. Now, I've been having a really bad day, and I must go find that truck."

The lady gaped at him. "Innocent? Why would an innocent person be following a military convoy? Anyway, I saved you from getting into a lot of trouble. You would have been captured, or killed on sight."

"Happens to me a lot," the Doctor replied, turning to leave, but the woman grabbed his arm.

"Where are you going?"

"After that truck," the Doctor said as if it should be blatantly obvious. "If I go now, I might just be able to catch it."

"Oh no, I can't let you do that," the woman said, dragging him further down the alleyway. "It's dangerous enough to be out this late without going and looking for trouble as well."

The Doctor struggled against the woman's grip, but his heart wasn't in it. That last comment had piqued his interest, and he wanted to know more. His curiosity always got the better of him, although he was unsure whether that was a flaw, or something to be proud of.

"What do you mean dangerous?" he asked, forgetting about the truck for the time being.

The woman gave him a long, hard look, as if trying to work out whether he was serious. "Where've you been these past weeks?" she said at last. "I'm talking about the Sky Riders."

The Doctor nodded as they rounded a corner. "Of course, the Sky Riders," he repeated. "And they are?"

"You're kidding me, right?"

"I don't kid. Well, that's not entirely true. I actually kid a lot. I'm not kidding now, if that's what you mean."

"You are mad."

The Doctor grinned widely, not doing anything to allay her fears. "That's me. Could you indulge a madman's curiosity, and tell me who these Sky Rider's are?"

The woman shrugged, deciding that the Doctor had completely lost his mind, and nothing she did would help him find it. "They're from up there," she said, pointing at the sky.

"Aliens?"

She nodded. "At least, we think so. No one has actually seen what they look like and come back alive."

"That doesn't sound too good," the Doctor said with a frown. "That makes it rather hard to fight them if you've never seen them."

"Oh people have seen them alright," the woman said, pausing at a corner to check that the next street was empty before dashing across. "But they wear armour when they come down to the planet. We think they must take it off when they return to their ship; but no one has ever come back from there."

"What do you mean by that?"

The woman stopped to give the Doctor another one of her probing looks. "I mean," she said, "that the Sky Riders take prisoners up to their spaceship, and they're never heard from again."

"That really doesn't sound too good at all."

"No. It's not."

The Doctor eased his arm out of the woman's grip. "Well, it's been nice talking to you, but I really must be going now. If you could just point me in the direction of the truck, I'll be on my way." He looked around at the unfamiliar, silent buildings. "Umm, where are we exactly?"

"Residential district," the woman replied, grabbing his arm and pulling him off again. "As for the truck, forget it. It's too late to find it now."

"You don't understand, they have my friend," the Doctor pointed out, trying to pull away. "I'm not going to leave her behind. I made a promise!"

"Forget her, you won't get her back. She's gone."

"No! It's never too late," the Doctor said, pulling her arm away. He walked down the alleyway that he couldn't remember ever entering and turned a corner before her realised that he had absolutely no idea where he was. He retraced his steps back to where the woman was. She hadn't moved a muscle.

"I'm Andrea," she said, offering her hand.

"The Doctor," he replied, taking the hand. If she thought the name odd, she didn't say anything about it.

"Okay Doctor," Andrea said. "It's no use chinwagging out in the open like this. I have somewhere we can talk safely."

The Doctor glanced over his shoulder, thinking about what might be happening to Brittany. Then he turned back to Andrea and squeezed her hand. "Well, lead on then," he said as the first missile streaked down out of the sky.


	7. War Begins

**A/N: Would have updated sooner, but the document manager was down. So: next chapter. Please enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: This disclaimer was deleted by Torchwood, due to the fact that it contained evidence on the quasi-secret alien hunters. If you really wanted to find them, I suppose you could just ask the guy that delivers their pizza. Torchwood has got to be the least secret secret organisation in the history of the universe.**

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**CHAPTER SEVEN: WAR BEGINS**

For the last few minutes, Brittany had politely sat through a number of increasingly tedious presentations, making encouraging remarks every now and then to show that she was, in fact, listening, and not asleep. Most of the information passed right over her head, but she understood enough to get the general idea.

There was a war. That much was obvious. Who the war was with was a little bit harder to work out. The attackers called themselves the Sky Riders, but that was about the limit of everyone's knowledge. Brittany wasn't all that familiar with war tactics and strategies, but she did think that it would be rather difficult to fight something that you knew nothing about.

After the presentations were over, Jake walked over to where Brittany was sitting. "So," he said earnestly, "what do you think?"

She gave a general nod, trying to work out how she could bluff her way through this. "Very informative," she tried. When Jake seemed a little disappointed by her answer, she added, "Good work on holding off the Sky Riders. Just one question. Who are the Sky Riders?"

Jake looked taken aback. "I thought you would be able to tell me," he said at last, giving her a stare that she was sure could see right through her fabrications. "After all, you are from head office."

Brittany shook her head, recalling all those military movies she had watched in college. "We're, uh, no closer to the truth than you are," she replied, hoping that answer would be good enough. While she realised this war was a serious situation, she couldn't help but feeling that pretending to be a captain was slightly fun.

"Although," she continued, thinking back on the pictures that she had been shown of the Sky Riders. "They do seem kind of familiar, like something I've seen before. I just can't recall what." She frowned to herself. "That seems to be happening a lot lately."

As she finished saying that, a tremor shook the room, rattling the computer stations and creaking the roof alarmingly. "What," she said after it had finished, "was that?"

"Sky Riders," Jake declared, dashing across the room. "They're earlier than normal."

"Early? Since when do invaders come at set times?"

Jake shook his head, though Brittany couldn't decide whether it was because he had no idea, or that she was completely inept when it came to the war. "Every night without fail, the Sky Riders attack. They only ever strike at night, never during the day." Jake shrugged. "I don't pretend to know why. Maybe it's some alien ritual or rule? I'm not an expert on alien culture."

"Well, you're a great help," Brittany muttered under her breath. Another explosion rocked the room, longer and louder than the first.

"Power up the laser disrupters!" Jake shouted above the noise, seeming not to notice the explosions crashing all around them.

"That one sounded awfully close," Brittany pointed out after the noise died down. Jake paused his stream of instructions and walked over to her.

"Just want to ask you a question," he said in explanation. "Have you ever been in direct combat before?"

"Not as such, no."

Jake groaned. "Of all the people head office could send me, I get some untested new recruit." He looked apologetically at Brittany. "No offence meant."

She shrugged. "None taken."

"This war is important enough to bring all the nations of Messaline together, something not done since the founding, and to help me protect the planet, I get some wet behind the ears young captain with no knowledge of even basic weaponry!" Jake looked her up and down, eyes taking in her dirty blue dress, as if he hadn't noticed she was wearing it before. "And what were you thinking, walking around dressed like that? This is a war, not a fun get together!"

Brittany smoothed down the front of her dress self-consciously. "I was going to a party," she said defensively. "It wasn't my choice."

Jake threw up his hands in dismay. "If I don't ask stupid questions, I won't get stupid answers." Brittany was feeling increasingly sure that her charade was going to be uncovered, and she would be court-marshalled, or whatever it was they did to impostors. However, something beeped from within the Sergeant's pocket, distracting him from his questioning.

He pulled some kind of metal device from his pocket, pushing the small silver button on the side of the block. "Hello?" he said into the device, and Brittany decided that it must be some kind of two-way radio or communicator.

"Sergeant Jake, it's Miller," the radio replied with a crackle, and Jake visibly stiffened when he recognised the voice.

"General," he said formally, no sign of distaste in his voice, but the feeling was clearly etched across his face.

"I heard that some kind of officer has arrived. Would you care to report?" said the General, his gruff voice somewhat tinny through the radio.

Jake looked at Brittany, and remained silent for a long time, considering what he should tell the general about her. "A captain from head office has arrived. A Brittany Harvey. Her credentials seem in order," he added, a little bit disbelieving.

Brittany decided that she better distance herself from Jake, before she accidentally let slip something that would give her away. Looking around at the flashing screens and holographic displays, she felt even more out of place than ever before. She just wanted to go home, but she wasn't quite sure where that was anymore.

Sydoriv wasn't her home, and it never had been. Always, she had felt like there had to be something more to life than eating, working and sleeping. The Doctor had confirmed that, showing her that the universe was so much more than what everyone thought it was. The TARDIS was more of home than Sydoriv, her home planet, and she wasn't planning on leaving any time soon.

The only problem that came with living in the TARDIS was the Doctor, or rather, the trouble that the Doctor always got himself into. Maybe he was trying to make up for something? Guilty with being the last of his kind, perhaps he went around trying to save others from the same fate. Whatever it was, it was highly infectious, and Brittany couldn't help but enjoy herself while she was with him, no matter what was happening. She just hoped that wherever the Doctor was right now, he was keeping himself safe. If he wasn't, she had better find a way of rescuing herself.

She didn't fancy hanging around these soldiers for too much longer.


	8. Sheltered

**Disclaimer: I DO own Doctor Who. Nah, just kidding.

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CHAPTER EIGHT: SHELTERED

Andrea's so called 'safe place' was actually the basement of a boarded up, half-destroyed shop. The basement itself was pretty well protected, with sheets of metal welded over the ceiling and walls.

"My son helped me with that," Andrea explained as she pulled up two folding chairs, "in the first days of the war."

The Doctor nodded, and sank down onto the nearest chair. For once, he wished he could just have an uneventful day. He had been taking Brittany to a party, a relatively danger free option. But some reason, God knows what, they had ended up in the middle of a war.

The Doctor sighed. Brittany had been captured by soldiers, and he was on the run. It couldn't be called the best situation, but at least he was safe, for now anyway. Andrea's shelter looked well stocked; shelves lined the walls, teeming with all manner of packaged foodstuffs. One particular jar caught his eye.

"May I?" he asked, waiting for consent before he started to eat her precious food.

Andrea shrugged. "Go ahead," she said. "Never liked the stuff. My husband did though," she added, mostly to herself.

With a small nod, the Doctor grabbed the jar of marmalade off the shelf, giving it a little tap on the wood. He unscrewed the lid and stuck his fingers into the breakfast spread. "And your husband is?" he asked, sucking the orange goo off his fingers.

"Was," Andrea corrected. "Jason Mitchells. He was a great man, but I – I lost him, in the first days of the war. Just unlucky I guess." The Doctor could see that she still hadn't come to terms with her loss.

"And your son?"

"Lost. The Tigers took him."

The Doctor frowned, fingers absently jammed into the marmalade. "These Tigers, what are they?"

Andrea frowned straight back at him. "You really aren't around from these parts, are you?"

"No," he replied happily, around a mouthful of marmalade. "Though I have been here before. Years ago, now. Hundreds, even."

Andrea raised an eyebrow, but didn't make any kind of inquisitive comment. "The Tigers are soldiers from Tiger Base Three. It's a military base hidden somewhere around these parts. Let's just say, they don't like us free people," Andrea explained. "They hunt us down and conscript us. They took my son from me, so he could fight for them in the war. For all I know, he could be dead."

"They took her," the Doctor hissed angrily. "They took my friend to use in a war that shouldn't even exist."

Andrea stared at him. "What are you saying?"

He leapt to his feet, dark anger on his face. "The Sky Riders are false. There is no such race. They're a ruse and this war is a fake. Something else is at work here, and I'm going to get to the bottom of it."

"What do you mean this war is fake?" Andrea cried angrily, "people have died!"

"Yes, people have died, but for what cause?" the Doctor pointed out, licking the last of the marmalade out from between his fingers, which kind of lessened the impact of his words. "Does anyone know what these Sky Riders want?" He spat the name of the aliens with such contempt that he surprised even himself. "No one kills without a reason, there has to be a motive. But what?"

Andrea shook her head. "I don't know. Now that I think about it, I really don't know."

But the Doctor wasn't finished yet. "And their weapons! I saw their missiles pummelling the city on the way here, but it was in a way I hadn't expected. Those were plasmic missiles."

Andrea didn't seem to comprehend the significance of that, so he elaborated further. "Plasmic weaponry should be impossible," he said in clarification, "it hasn't been invented yet, not in this galaxy. This can mean one of only two things. Either we're dealing with a time travelling enemy, or Messaline is mixed up in something far more complex than I had initially thought. I knew something was messing with time, but this just puts the icing on the cake. And possibly the sprinkles as well." He frowned deeply. "I never really liked sprinkles. They make too much of a mess."

The whole, 'time travelling enemy' thing was passing right over Andrea's head, but she though she understood the last bit. "Nice metaphor," she said, "but how does that help us?"

"I could always eat the sprinkles," the Doctor mused, "but if the sprinkles in question are in fact alien warriors, that might not work. Leave a bad taste in my mouth, that would."

Andrea sagged in her chair. "Excellent," she muttered dejectedly. "I've found myself a bona fide nut job."

The Doctor smiled ecstatically. "I know! I just need a really big dustpan and brush! That could work." Then he frowned. "Where I would get that, I don't know."

"Great," Andrea muttered, sinking further into self-pity.

"Maybe, if I had a really big vacuum cleaner, I could suck those sprinkles right out of the sky."

"Like that helps."

The Doctor seemed to notice Andrea for the first time. "I'm sorry? Did you say something?"

Andrea spread her hands in a gesture of dismay. "How are bloody sprinkles going to help us? We're in the middle of a war, and you're likening our predicament to a cake topping?"

The Doctor looked like he had been physically chastened. "Sorry. Sometimes I get a bit carried away," he admitted, sinking back down onto his chair. He sighed heavily, leaning backwards so he could balance the chair on to legs.

"If there's one thing I hate," he said at last, "it's war."

"I bet there are plenty of people who would agree with you on that," Andrea said sadly. "Millions."

The Doctor brooded darkly. "Oh, I think there are far more than that."

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**A/N: Sorry about the wait, I've been on holiday and have only just arrived back home. Please review, and tell me what you think. This was one of my favourite chapters to write.**


	9. Family Matters

**Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who - but all ideas for this story are mine (curse my evil brain).

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CHAPTER NINE: FAMILY MATTERS

The fighting had stopped, for now. Tiger Base Three had time to regroup and redistribute defenders, and amid the chaos of shouted orders and rushing troops, Brittany had managed to slip away unnoticed. Of course, she wouldn't be able to go far, since all the exits from the base were heavily guarded, but she was still able to get some fresh air.

It didn't take her long to find her way up through the base, and when she stepped out onto the roof, she was greeted by a bracing wind that carried with it the smell of smoke and fire.

Brittany wandered across the flat roof, skirting around protruding towers and ventilation stacks. It was a clear, cold night; thousands of stars glittered across the black velvet backdrop of the night sky. It was quiet and peaceful, but Brittany knew that the Sky Rider spaceship was up there, somewhere, just waiting to open fire on the planet below.

Brittany stopped when she reached the railing that marked the edge of the building and rested her arms on it, leaning out over the open space. The top of the building could only be three or four stories above the ground, but she recalled walking up a lot more stairs than that. A lot of the base must be underground, probably to protect it from attacks.

As Brittany stood there, she wondered about where the Doctor might be. Staring out into a metropolis of broken towers and smoking ruins, she knew there were thousands of places a determined Time Lord could hide, and she dearly hoped that he had found one of those places. Although, she added ruefully, anywhere the Doctor went, danger was sure to follow.

Back in that church, first landed, the Doctor had talked about a war that had consumed his home planet. Thousands of stars were shining in the night sky. Maybe one of them was his? She had caught him gazing up at the stars many times, but perhaps it wasn't just a simple fascination. Perhaps it was longing, longing for his long-lost home.

"Ma'am? This isn't really a night to be alone."

Brittany turned her head to see one of the base's soldiers behind her, standing stiffly and timidly. He was slightly taller than her, although nowhere near as tall as the Doctor. And where the Time Lord was skinny, the soldier was lanky, like he didn't quite fit his height. Like every other soldier she had seen, he wore a khaki uniform with the same leaping tiger emblem on his shoulder, although his clothes were ill-fitting, like they were perhaps designed for a larger man. Dark green eyes peered out at her from under a helmet that was far too big. He looked young; barely seventeen or eighteen.

"Ma'am?" he prompted, and Brittany realised that she had been silent for quite a long time.

"You're right," she replied, turning back to survey the cityscape. "This is definitely not a place to be on your own." She couldn't help but think of the Doctor as she said that.

The young soldier moved so he was standing beside her, elbows resting on the railing. "I'm Ben, by the way." He said, staring wistfully at the battered landscape, "and I'm supposed to be a private."

"Brittany. Apparently, I'm a captain."

"But you're not?"

Brittany chuckled to herself. "Do I look like a captain?" she asked, tugging at her blue dress. "Bloody useless, this thing." She pulled the psychic paper out of her trouser pocket, and showed it to him. "Look, best fake ID in the universe."

Ben peered closely at the leather-encased paper. "Why are you telling me this? I could go explain to Sergeant Jake that you're not a real captain," he pointed out logically, pushing his helmet away from his eyes.

Brittany put the wallet away, fingers resting on the sonic screwdriver for the barest instant before her hand returned to the railing. "Then do it," she said, and Ben responded with a sigh. The two watched, in silence, as a fire took hold in some distant pat of the city.

"My friend is out there somewhere," Brittany said at last. "They got me, but not him. He's still out there, and he'll find a way to get me out of here."

Ben laughed ruefully. "That'll be the day. No one has ever escaped from here before, and believe me, they've tried. I'm amazed your friend got away. Corporal Jones down in the infirmary told me that one of the soldiers that came back was smashed up real good. Three fractured ribs and a broken arm. Whoever your friend was, he did pretty well."

"He always does pretty well," Brittany replied with a smile. "That's the Doctor for you."

Ben stiffened. "Did you say 'the Doctor'?"

"Yeah," she replied suspiciously, "what's wrong with that?"

"It's said that someone called the Doctor is the only one who can stop the war. The only one who can stop the killing. I never believed, though. How can one man end all this?" He swept out his arm to encompass the whole of the city.

"Then you've never met the Doctor," Brittany said, "because he is the most brilliant and determined man that has ever lived, although I'm sure his ego is the size of a planet. Just you watch. He'll fix this."

Ben nodded, and she could see that he didn't really believe her. "We better get back inside," he said at last, tapping Brittany on the arm. "It is dangerous out here."

"Yeah," she replied absently, letting herself be led back towards the door that allowed access to Tiger Base Three. For just a moment there, she had felt like something was distinctly out of place. Something wasn't right about this war, just like the Doctor had said. And whatever it was, it has the whole planet fooled.


	10. Pieces of a Puzzle

**A/N: Finally got another chapter done, so, only about three or four more to go now. Have I got you all stumped as to who the Sky Riders are?

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CHAPTER TEN: PIECES OF A PUZZLE

The Doctor absently picked at his meal of potatoes, reconstituted vegetables and canned meat with a plastic fork. It wasn't the best meal he had ever eaten, not be a long shot, but he was thankful that Andre was giving him some of her hard-earned food. This was wartime, and with the only source of food being what others had left behind, he considered it a great honour that she was sharing with him. Didn't make it taste any better though.

If all had gone to plan, right now he and Brittany would be eating canapés and nibblies with the head of the New New York mafia. Instead, he was sitting in a basement-turned-bomb-shelter. And Brittany, well, wherever she was didn't bear thinking about. If those soldiers had hurt her, they would learn the true meaning of 'the Oncoming Storm'.

This war was not right. He knew that as soon as he had stepped out into the church. There was just a sense of wrongness around this whole situation, but he had no idea what was causing it. He was a Time Lord; he should be able to see what was messing with time, but he couldn't. It was frustrating, to say the least.

Still, he would find out soon enough, usually while in the capture of some alien menace. I always seemed to work that way. He just wanted it to happen already. Lately, everything seemed to be going pear-shaped, and that phrase sounded particularly nasty to the Doctor. So many unanswered questions. He hated unanswered questions. They always came back to ruin your life later.

First, there was that shade on Sydoriv. Something had opened that rift to the void, but that was impossible. All the link to other universes had been closed, so such a thing wasn't possible. And yet it had happened.

Then there had been the Thoraln and their mysterious 'Golden One'. The Thoraln didn't even have the technology to create gunpowder, and yet they had an interstellar spaceship. Things just didn't add up. And then there was the mystery of who was using mind-control on the Thoraln. The 'Golden One'? Or something more sinister? Who or what was the Golden One anyway? And what did it want with him?

Then, only a few days ago, there had been that business with the shadow. A flash of golden light and the they had been in the middle of some rainy Welsh forest, with a monster hungry for revenge after them. Again, gold. It must be connected somehow. So soon after the destruction of the dalek fleet, and already he was back in the think of it. Couldn't he just have some good, clean, danger-filled adventure? None of this intergalactic revenge stuff? Sometimes he wondered…

And now, there was this war. This war with the Sky Riders. Who were they? What did they want with Messaline? Why were they completely destroying the planet? What was the purpose of all this bloodshed? He had a really bad feeling that he wasn't going to like the answer.

He stabbed one of the boiled potatoes on his plate, and chewed through it thoughtfully. "So," he said after he swallowed, "you."

Andrea looked up from her own meal. "What about me?"

He stared at what he hoped was a piece of rehydrated asparagus, before turning to her. "How did you end up out here?" The asparagus had a strange fruity tang to it, kind of citrusy, so he washed it down with another bite of potato. "I mean, these Tigers can't be all bad can they? Why don't you just jump ship and bunk with them? You'd have a chance of finding your son, too."

Andrea twiddled her fork absently. "For all its dangers, it's safer out on the streets."

"Why? Surely all those soldiers with their military bases and weapons would be good protection."

She shook her head. "Can't you hear it out there? All that destruction? That's those military bases being pummelled into the ground. At first, the Sky Riders attacked at random, but now they know where the soldiers are, it's the military that takes the biggest hits."

Something exploded over their heads, and the already dim electric lights cut out, plunging the basement into darkness.

"That sounded like a close one," the Doctor announced to the dark room. Trying to work out what that liquid seeping through the tops of his black sneakers was. It smelt kind of salty.

A candle flared into life, casting eerie flickering shadows across the room. Andre held it up, checking for serious damage, while the Doctor decided it was prudent to get his priorities right, and checked his shoes. He jumped in fright when he spotted the slimy green things that had spilt across the floor.

"What is it Doctor?" Andrea queried, wondering what could have scared him. "What's wrong?"

He pointed at the floor, while simultaneously leaping up onto a chair. "Gherkins!" he exclaimed, pointed at said foodstuff. "I've got gherkin juice on my feet!" Andrea shook her head in disbelief, returning to making an inventory of supplies that had been damaged in the explosion.

The Doctor removed his trainers, socks and all, and tried to clean his feet on a piece of paper he had found in his jacket pocket. Admittedly, it was a very old and yellowing piece of paper, more like parchment, and it took him about half a minute to realise that it was actually the United States Declaration of Independence that he had, on numerous occasions, forgotten to remove from his pocket.

Looking very guilty, the Doctor returned the now wet document to his pocket, vowing to stow it somewhere safe once he returned to the TARDIS. He replaced his shoes and socks, decided that maybe it were best if h just lived with wet socks for a while.

Returning from her cataloguing, Andrea set the candle down on the floor and sank into her folding chair. "Didn't lose too much," she said, ignoring the Time Lord's looks of discomfort. "Five jars of pickled vegetables, three jars of sauce, two bottles of milk and half a bottle of water, on account of that bottle of water being only half full." She frowned at the ceiling. "I think the generator was busted though. I'm not really sure how to fix it."

The Doctor winked at her. "Oh well, it's lucky you've got me, innit? I'm brilliant with mechanical things. I'll get it up and running for you in the morning, how does that sound?"

"That's the best news I've heard in a long time," Andre admitted with a smile.

The Time Lord smiled back at her. "Oh, there's plenty more where that came from, trust me." He then grinned at the ceiling. "You Sky Riders better watch out, because I'm coming for you," he declared, brandishing a pencil rather wildly in place of his usual sonic screwdriver, "and this war will end, tonight."


	11. Computer Skills

**A/N: This story is almost finished. Two more chapters to go, I think. And, I was wondering, would anyone want to see a story in comic form? I was thinking of doing one, but if no one wnts to read it, there is really no point. It'll go up on DeviantArt if it ever does get done. Anyway, tell me what you think.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who. But I do now own a new pen, so now, I can write more stories for y'all.**

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**CHAPTER ELEVEN: COMPUTER SKILLS**

When she walked back into the control room, Brittany made sure to keep away from Sergeant Jake. She felt like she would be pushing her luck if she talked to him again. He was starting to mistrust her ruse, and she really had no desire to be revealed just yet. At least she had one ally in this place. Ben had followed her inside, offering to keep her company. Brittany decided that having a friend in this place was a good idea, and on the way to the control room, she had learnt a bit more about him.

Ben Mitchells was an unwilling conscript, dragged off the streets, given a weapon, and expected to fight. There was nothing he could do; if he refused to follow orders, he could be thrown into a cell and have his rations reduced. Good men had died down in those cells, as an example to the others. On General Miller's orders, too.

From what she had heard, Brittany had decided that Miller wasn't a very nice individual. Killing innocent conscripts just to set an example was butchery, but it seemed that nobody had done anything about it. If she wasn't so busy trying to keep up the ruse of Captain Harvey, she would have gone and given the General a good talking to.

Instead, she was sitting in the corner of the control room, watching colourful displays spin across wall-length screens. It was all a bit much, really. Compared to this, a party with the mafia seemed much preferable.

She was still brooding in the corner when the largest attack of the night came. The whole base shook from the impact, sending Brittany, and many other people, tumbling to the floor. Yellow-white sparks showered over her, while a fire broke out somewhere to her right. Above the crashes and squealing of metal, she could make out Jake's voice, barking out orders. "-eached, get to defence stations everyone. Sky Riders inbound from North 45, so get to it, go!"

She was aware that Ben was trying to say something, so she focused her still confused senses on him.

"Brittany? Are you alright? Need any help?"

"Nah," she replied, dragging herself back to her feet. "I'm fine, don't worry about me."

Jake tapped her on the shoulder. "Captain Harvey, could you and Private Mitchell stay here?"

Brittany shrugged and glanced around at the deserted room. "Yeah," she said, slightly confused by it all. "Fine by me."

The sergeant nodded, and handed her a fire extinguisher. "Do yourself a favour," he said on his way out of the door, "and put out that fire."

Brittany scowled as the door swung shut, and sprayed thick yellow foam over the spluttering flames. "The cheek," she muttered, discarding the empty metal canister, "the bloody cheek. Where'd they all go?"

For an unwilling soldier, Ben loaded his gun like an expert. "The base has been breached. Sky Riders are inside Tiger Base Three."

Brittany frowned at the empty room. "But where did everyone go?" she repeated. "This is the control room, isn't it?"

"This is the communications room," Ben corrected, waving a hand at their surroundings. "If there's a real emergency, Sampson heads down to the war room. That's where Miller normally is," he added, watching Brittany pull the sonic screwdriver out of her pocket. "Even Jake tries to avoid the General."

"I don't blame him," Brittany admitted, choosing at random a computer terminal to desecrate. After a few bursts from the screwdriver, the metal cover came off and she threw it to the floor.

Ben watched curiously as she began to fiddle with the electronics inside the terminal's casing. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Trying to get into the system," she answered, pulling some wires out and discarding them over her shoulder, "but I'm not sure what I'm doing. The Doctor taught me a bit of electronics but, to be honest, I was too busy sleeping to listen."

"This Doctor," Ben said, pressing the computer's 'on' switch, "who is he?"

Brittany chuckled, both at the question and her own ineptitude. "Now, if I told you that, I'd have to kill you. And he would probably kill me for killing you, but never mind that."

A log-in screen appeared on the computer, and Brittany frowned at it. Once again, Ben helped her out by typing in a login code. The screen went blank, then prompted her to scan her ID. Ben was already reaching for his, but Brittany pulled out the psychic paper and ran it across a glowing scanner.

"You know, I never asked," she said as she tucked the leather wallet away. "Are you all nocturnal, I mean, with the Sky Riders coming only at night and all?"

Ben shook his head as he reached for the keyboard. "We take alternate shifts. Just luck of the –"

The lights flickered and went out, plunging the communications room into darkness, apart from the eerie blue glow coming from the computer monitors. After a few seconds, the lights came back on, along with the hum of heretofore unnoticed ventilation systems.

"Okay," Brittany breathed almost silently, "what was that?"

Ben was already tapping out commands on the keyboard. "Power outage, corridor five, section D, sub-station 2. Power is re-routing through a different channel."

The screen changed to show a slightly scratchy image of a hallway. "I can't see anything strange," Brittany stated, peering at the screen, "I – hold on, what's that?"

Something had moved into frame, a something that looked strangely familiar. It was a heavily armoured figure, perhaps seven or eight foot tall, clad in some kind of blue metal armour made up of various segmented plates. Then, it looked straight at the camera, brought its weapon to bear, and fired.

The image cut out.

"Okay," Brittany repeated, "what in the nine hells was that?"

"A Sky Rider." Ben readied his weapon. "And it's coming this way."


	12. You Can't Stop Me!

**A/N: I has everyone stumped as to who the Sky Riders are, yes? Next chapter, you shall all find out. Last chapter of the story too. How will it all be resolved? I bet your just dying to find out. Not dying literally, but, well, you know what I mean. And it's wierd, because I'm about eight chapters ahead of this in what I have written, and I come back and type this chapter, and think, "jeez, are you all only up to here? Wow, are you in for a surprise." I obviously have far too much spare time. I'll try and get next chap up tonight, but if not, sometime this week.**

**Disclaimer: The Noof doth not claim rights to the brilliant Doctor Who. This written work, however, can be claimed by the one otherwise known as Chicken Noodle or Foot Noodle.**

* * *

**CHAPTER TWELVE: YOU CAN'T STOP ME!**

To Andrea, the Doctor was a welcome distraction. Most of the time, she was so caught up in surviving just a little bit longer that she forgot to smile. Then she had met the Doctor, and had smiled more than she had for a long time. He was just so … odd.

Even though it looked like the Doctor was smiling, he was actually brooding silently. He promised Sandra that he would look after Brittany, and he had promised Brittany that he was going back for her. But he hadn't tried anything yet. He was just sitting in Andrea's safe house like some kind of coward. True, he was a bit of a coward, but he couldn't just leave Brittany with the soldiers. Every minute he delayed, was another minute of potential danger for her. If Brittany was with the soldiers then, according to Andrea, she was in far more danger than he.

He just needed some kind of plan, some way to get past the Sky Riders. If only he had the TARDIS, but the soldiers had taken his beautiful time ship too. All he had was a gherkin-flavoured copy of the Declaration of Independence, wet feet and his wits.

Waiting until morning would eliminate the Sky Riders out of the problem, but he didn't think he had that much time. It was then he had an idea. A most brilliant and daring idea. He had stayed to stop the war, and that was exactly what he was going to do.

"Andrea," he said, standing up resolutely, "what did you say the Sky Riders did with people they find out on the streets?"

"They take them up to their ship," she answered, unsure of where he was going with this.

"And what happens when people are taken to the ship?" The Doctor picked up the jar of marmalade and stuck it in his pocket for later.

Andrea shrugged. "Well they're…they're not heard from again."

"But what happens to them?" the Doctor repeated, tucking his hands in his pockets and making for the door. "I think it's about time someone found out, don't you?" He pushed open the door and walked out of the basement.

Andrea listened to his footsteps on the stairs for a moment, until the realisation that he had left the room finally sunk in. She ran after him. "Hey!" she shouted, running up the stairs and into the dilapidated shop's ground floor. "Where are you going?"

"I thought it was obvious," the Doctor said, a disparaging tone creeping into his voice. "Outside."

"But you can't!"

"I can, and you can't stop me." The Doctor walked outside through a hole in the wall, and stood in the middle of the street. It was completely silent, well, apart from the explosions that ripped across the city. Andrea paused on the threshold, wanting to follow the Doctor, wanting to be brave, but she couldn't do it. She was too afraid of what would happen if the Sky Riders found her.

The Doctor peered up into the sky, picking out the one star among millions, the one star that was slightly brighter than the rest, the one star that was not a star, but a spaceship.

"Hey, Sky Riders!" he roared, screaming at the stars. "I bet you snivelling cowardly soldiers can't capture one measly person. I bet you're too scared to leave that hunk of metal you call a spaceship. Well, you know what? I call it junk. A great big slab of interstellar junk." He glanced casually around the street.

"What? Too scared to even trade a threat with me? What a shame. I thought that someone powerful enough to decimate an entire planet would at least have the decency to answer me. But, I suppose if you have dirt for brains, an answer is beyond your capability."

Whether it was that last outburst, or just the volume at which it was delivered that attracted the Sky Riders, it was impossible to say. Whatever it was though, it did the trick.

There was a bright flash of blue light that blinded the Doctor for a few seconds, and once his vision cleared, he caught his first glimpse of a Sky Rider.

The thought that sprang instantly to mind that it was extremely familiar. It was taller than he was, with a long snout and pointed ears. However, he couldn't tell what it really looked like because it was wearing some kind of strange segmented metal armour with a blue tint to it. His second though was more along the lines of 'aw crap', though he refrained from saying this out loud.

There were two of the mysterious Sky Riders, and they were both training some kind of alien gun on him. That was why he hated war. Far too many guns for his liking.

"Transmat, am I right? And those are plasma rifles, aren't they?" he said coolly. "you do know that's impossible, don't you?"

The Sky Riders didn't say anything.

The Doctor pouted. "Aww, don't be like that," he said jamming his hands into his pockets. "Life's no fun if you're like that. Well, anyway, where was I?" He paused, deep in though.

"That's right!" he exclaimed, snapping his fingers. "Take me to your leader!"

There was a second flash of blue light, and the two aliens disappeared, taking the Doctor with them.


	13. Sky Riders

**A/N: Mwahahahaha. That's all I have to say about this chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who, but I can claim responsibilty for the happenings of my stories.**

* * *

**CHAPTER THIRTEEN: SKY RIDERS**

"That one sounded closer," Brittany remarked as she and Ben watched what was left of the security network.

"Yeah," Ben agreed, switching views as another camera went offline.

For the past few minutes, they had listened as the sounds of gunfire and explosions came closer and closer. Brittany had never been in a war before, so it was a scary situation for her. Well, Ben was scared too, but he wasn't about to show it. It was probably a pride thing.

Another loud explosion rattled the room, louder than the others that had come before. Clouds of dust spiralled down from the ceiling, coating everything in a fine layer of grey motes.

"The camera outside the door has just gone offline," Ben reported, worry evident in his voice as he lifted his gun up. "Something's out there."

There was a long, drawn out moment of deathly silence, then the double doors blew off their hinges in a shower of green sparks. And there, standing in the doorway, was a whole squadron of Sky Riders.

That teleport exchange had been rough. The Doctor had a splitting headache, and nausea to boot. Whoever these Sky Riders were, they definitely needed to fix up their welcoming techniques. That had been nasty.

Once the blue after images had faded, the Doctor had a good look around. He was in a small, crowded room, but there didn't seem to be any sign of the Sky Riders. Just a whole bunch of prisoners, human and hath alike. Now he thought about it, this room looked an awful lot like a holding pen. And he didn't have his sonic screwdriver.

But he wasn't going to let that stop him and, being the Doctor, he licked the wall. He savoured the flavour for a moment, then let his brow crease.

"Titalium Carbide," he breathed, taking a step back. "But the last time I saw that…"

The door shot open, revealing a pack of unfriendly looking aliens.

"Thoraln," the Doctor realised, "the Sky Riders are Thoraln. But, how?"

The lead Thoraln stepped forward, spear levelled at the prisoners. "You will come with us."

The Doctor raised his hand. "Umm, I think there has been some mistake," he suggested. "I specifically asked to be taken to your leader. Unless our leader happens to be around here, I would very much like to –"

Tears watered in his eyes as he rubbed the welt on his cheek. "You wouldn't happen to be anyone's mother, would you? That was one hell of a slap."

The dog/stag alien gave him something approximating a scowl, so he snapped his mouth shut. He didn't want another slap. That had _hurt_.

More Thoraln entered the room, this time carrying plasmic weapons which were trained on the prisoners.

"You _will_ come with us," the leader repeated, more forcefully, and the human and hath filed out of the room. The Doctor hesitated for a moment, but after a look at the Thoraln guns, he decided it was best if he just followed the crowd. After all, it got him out of that room. And he really didn't like that room.

They were led down many long, twisting corridors, and the Doctor supposed that this spaceship was a lot bigger that the Thoraln's last one. Most of the other prisoners looked rather worried and were unresponsive to his attempts at conversation, so the Time Lord settled for having a bit of a gander.

It looked rather similar to the last Thoraln ship he had encountered, and he couldn't help but wonder where they had gotten to after their freedom had been returned. Perhaps it had something to do with the curved shape of the corridor, but any noise made seemed to be magnified ten-fold. Their footsteps alone would have been enough to give a raging mob a run for its money, no pun intended. He could imagine the damage it would do if Donna was in here with him, complaining at the top of her lungs. His fiery Donna…

Something sharp prodded him in the shoulder, and he realised that he had been drifting off. That's what reminiscing does for you. He also realised that they were now in another room. This one was long and wide, more like a feasting hall made of metal than a spaceship room. The Doctor decided that they must be somewhere near the engines; he could feel a dull throb through the soles of his feet.

The Thoraln beside him prodded him with its spear again, ushering him along the hall and after the other prisoners. The room looked just like other rooms, albeit bigger, with the same metal grating for floor and the strip lights in the ceiling. The only thing that was bothering the Doctor was the pods lining the wall.

They were built into the walls, and stood open, mouth like yawning pits. It looked like it would be a mite cramped inside one of them and somehow, he doubted they had anything to do with snowglobes. They looked too…sleek, too malign. The only thing connecting the pods was a black power conduit that ran along the wall, a single thick wire servicing each pod.

"Could we talk about this?" the Doctor asked hopefully as he was ushered towards one of the pods. "I mean, what have I ever done to you? Surely you have some mercy in that alien heart of yours? Oh, come on, don't do this to me, you really don't want to do this, you really actually want to make me a cup of tea and –"

The Thoraln rolled its eyes in an oh-so-human expression of annoyance, and roughly shoved the babbling Time Lord into a pod. A matte black cover slid down, cutting off his view to the outside world.

He had barely enough room to stand, let alone move his arms so he could bang on the door. Not that they would hear him anyway. It was dead silent within the pod. He couldn't even hear the rumble of the engine anymore. The only sounds were his quick breathing, which he concentrated on slowing down into a more regular pattern and the irregular beating of his two hearts echoing loudly in his ears.

If only he had his sonic screwdriver, then he'd be out of here in a jiffy, but Brittany had it. Why had he even given it to her? It just wasn't logical. He never gave anyone his sonic screwdriver, not for this long. Well, except for River Song, but that didn't count. There was just something about Brittany that seemed trustworthy. He had even let her fly the TARDIS for Rassilon's sake! That was just downright mental.

He left that thought behind when he became aware of the buzzing. It was electricity tickling his ear, so he looked upwards at where he had seen the power cable enter the pod. Something was definitely happening. Something bad, he guessed.

A salty smell assaulted his nostrils, and a lemon tang rested on his tongue. "Hold on," he whispered, eyes watering, "that's Audek radiation. But that's brilliant! Use the radiation energy as a carrier to transfer life energy from a target into a converter, where it can be changed into electricity! I would congratulate the creator if it wasn't so unethical, and I wasn't about to be sucked dry of life energy…" He trailed off after he realised what he had just said.

"Ah, bad," he had time to squeak before the excruciating pain began.

The Doctor screamed.

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**A/N: It's a two-part story. Did I forget to mention it? Just as a by-note, I will be on a slight hiatus for a little while, as I wish to fix up Darkness Beneath, among other things. Don't worry, there will be more chapters on the way.**


	14. Next Time

**CHAPTER FOURTEEN: NEXT TIME…**

Before Brittany even knew what she was doing, her finger had plunged into the centre of the button.

* * *

Brittany secretly crossed he fingers behind her back. "Uh, yes sir. It was an emergency sir."

I'm sure it was, _captain_, but if you hadn't realised by now, we are trapped inside our own base. With the enemy I might add."

* * *

"This is what I am, Doctor. I can see the whole of creation; I can see the threads that bind it all together. I don't think you ever understood that."

* * *

"This war continues," the warleader stated, the Thoraln turning away. "Power up the phase cannons."

* * *

"I know you're not who you say you are –"

"But how?" Brittany interjected.

The Sergeant waved a hand dismissively. "Doesn't matter. I would rather not tell the General though, so I want you to do something for me."

"Name it."

"I need you to find the Doctor."

* * *

"Ready missile silo five," Miller growled, "because I'll be damned if I let those furry bastards have a victory."

"But you can't!" Jake objected vehemently. "That's an antimatter missile. The explosion could backlash and wipe out half the continent."

"A necessary sacrifice."

* * *

The only thing the Doctor could think of was the pain. It attacked his whole body mercilessly, an unrelenting force intent on draining him of his very life force, just to power a ship waging a war that by all rights shouldn't even exist. In a kind of detached, emotionless way, the Doctor knew that if he wasn't released soon, he would be forced to regenerate.

* * *

The Doctor and Brittany will return in **Thoraln Conspiracy**. Tune in next week, folks!


End file.
